Dacia might be cheap and cheerful but it's also proved to be the choice for many in the UK.

Relaunched under the ownership of Renault in 2013, Dacia has unashamedly tagged itself as the no-frills option for drivers on tight budgets, selling new cars at almost second-hand prices.

And Britons have responded to the low-cost appeal - we've officially bought more than 100,000 of them over the last four years, the manufacturer confirmed.

Landmark low-cost car: James Hardiman, sales manager at S J Cook and Sons in Bristol, handed over the keys to the 100,000th Dacia sold in the UK to new owner Heather Reiss

Buyers have been able to drive away in a brand spanking new Dacia for as little as £5,995 since 2013 - and many Britons have done just that, with 101,936 cars being bought since the Romanian car brand's comeback.

That compares to 106,521 models sold by Jaguar in the UK in the same period. While obviously a Jaguar is far more expensive, comparing those Dacia sales figures to such an established brand proves just how popular the affordable marque has become.

And it's households driving the sales, with 94 per cent of all Dacias registered being sold to retail customers rather than businesses and fleets.

To mark the milestone, a returning customer Heather Reiss, from Bristol, was handed the keys to the 100,000th UK vehicle after trading in her three-year old Sandero Stepway for the recently facelifted model.

Speaking about hitting the landmark figure, Louise O’Sullivan, head of Dacia UK, said: 'Dacia was launched in 2013 and straight away we had great public interest in the brand.

'Loyalty to the Dacia brand has never been higher as we’re starting to see many customers, like Heather, returning to the brand to trade their old Dacia in for a new one. We wish Heather all the best in her new Sandero Stepway.'

As well as selling in high volumes, they've also received plenty of plaudits.

Back to basics: As you can see, there isn't much in terms of creature comforts but Dacias are proving to be reliable and increasingly popular in the UK

In fact, Dacia has won 36 awards in the UK since returning to the market, including the Sandero's vote as What Car's Best Small Car for under £12,000 for five consecutive years and high reliability ratings from owners in Auto Express' Driver Power survey of late.

According to Dacia, if you line up all the cars it has sold to date in the UK, they would double the 117-mile distance of the M25 motorway.

It also means that Dacia is now firmly set among the 25 best-selling brands in the country, significantly out-performing the likes of Mitsubishi, Porsche and Lexus on units alone.